Best HVAC Schools.com

Best HVAC Schools in Arkansas (2026)

Edited by Taylor Rupe, B.S., B.A.

Published · Last updated

Every accredited HVAC program in Arkansas sits inside a public college or university, and every one covers refrigeration rather than air conditioning alone. Arkansas licenses individual technicians rather than companies, and waives the fee outright for applicants on public assistance, the recently unemployed, or anyone under 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. Its board rules and its statute disagree about the licence classes, which is worth knowing before planning around one.

Downtown Little Rock, Arkansas
Downtown Little Rock. Photo by Cliff, licensed under CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
4 Accredited HVAC schools
$48,110 Median wage, AR
4,960 Jobs in AR
On this page

HVAC programs

Accredited HVAC schools and programs in Arkansas

Arkansas has 4 accredited HVAC schools, each of them accredited by HVAC Excellence or PAHRA. Ranks are national: an HVAC program shown at 6th sits 6th among all accredited HVAC programs in the country, not 6th in Arkansas. Of the 4, none name EPA Section 608 preparation where they describe the program and none hold both accreditations. These HVAC programs list their length, cost and credential wherever the school publishes them.

#1

University of Arkansas - Pulaski Technical College

North Little Rock, AR · Post Secondary

63/100 ranking score
Credential Associate's
Accreditation HVAC Excellence , a program of the ESCO Group

The HVACR program at the University of Arkansas Pulaski Technical College (UA-PTC) in North Little Rock exits at three points: an Associate of Applied Science degree, a Technical Certificate, and a Certificate of Proficiency. The program integrates technical courses with general education, a combination the college says develops a wide range of technical and academic knowledge and skills.

Graduates can aim at a wider set of roles than installation and service alone. The college lists HVAC service technician, refrigeration service technician, HVACR drafter, HVACR designer, energy auditor, building inspector, and HVACR estimator as career opportunities, which reflects the program's stated mission of preparing students to service all forms of HVACR equipment and act professionally toward coworkers, employers, and customers.

The program page does not publish tuition, program length, or credit counts, so prospective students will need to ask directly. The program sits within the School of Technical and Professional Studies at 3000 West Scenic Drive in North Little Rock, alongside trade programs such as welding, electrical lineworker, and automotive technology.

Sources: Arkansas HVAC school program, IPEDS.

HVACR program details
#2

Arkansas Tech University - Ozark Campus

Ozark, AR · Post Secondary

63/100 ranking score
Credential Certificate and degree
Accreditation HVAC Excellence , a program of the ESCO Group

Six credential options run through the air conditioning and refrigeration program at Arkansas Tech University's Ozark campus, which holds HVAC Excellence accreditation: an Associate of Applied Science, an AAS with a facilities management option, a technical certificate, a technical certificate with a facilities maintenance option, a certificate of proficiency, and a construction technology certificate of proficiency. Applying to ATU-Ozark is free.

The program prepares students for a field that includes sales, installation, maintenance, service, and operation of equipment in residential, commercial, and industrial settings, and it places added emphasis on green technology, incorporating PV arrays and wind turbines. Students work on equipment in a lab setting, internships are available, and skills taught include testing and inspection, diagnosing operation errors, installing equipment and wiring, and repairing machines and systems.

Graduates have landed at Atchley HVAC, Atchley Mechanical, Blaylok HVAC, Trane Technologies, and Walmart Refrigeration, and the program lists career options ranging from field technician, refrigeration mechanic, and specialized repair technician to construction estimator, systems designer, and HVAC sales and service representative. The program notes that demand for service technicians is expected to keep expanding as computer applications spread into industrial fields.

Sources: Arkansas HVAC school program, HVAC Excellence.

HVACR program details
#3

North Arkansas College

Harrison, AR · Post Secondary

58/100 ranking score
Credential Associate's
Accreditation HVAC Excellence , a program of the ESCO Group

Commercial HVAC/R is the emphasis of the two-year Associate of Applied Science at North Arkansas College, which holds HVAC Excellence programmatic accreditation. The curriculum covers installation, repair, and maintenance of residential and commercial systems and light commercial refrigeration, plus building automation controls and industrial motors and controls, including PLCs, with the goal of improving energy efficiency and reducing operating costs.

The program runs on campus only, with no online option, and is designed to move students into a career upon graduation. Graduates are prepared for work as HVAC technicians, refrigeration technicians, maintenance technicians, and heating and cooling specialists, with employment opportunities in construction, facilities management, manufacturing, and HVAC service companies.

Northark points to experienced instructors, industry-aligned training, and affordable tuition as the program's case, though the page does not list a specific tuition figure. Stated learning outcomes include safety practices and protocols, professional communication and soft skills, and the design, installation, and operation of residential and commercial HVAC/R equipment, including building automation and commercial controls.

Sources: Arkansas HVAC school program, HVAC Excellence, IPEDS.

HVACR program details
#4

Arkansas State University - Beebe

Searcy, AR · Post Secondary

56/100 ranking score
Credential Certificate
Accreditation HVAC Excellence , a program of the ESCO Group

Every HVACR student at Arkansas State University Beebe's Searcy campus receives a complete professional toolkit, funded by a $50,000 Metallica Scholars Initiative grant, the college's second consecutive year in the initiative. Kits include core hand tools, electrical and diagnostic instruments, refrigeration service tools, sheet-metal tools, and organization gear, removing a major startup cost and letting students train in the lab with the equipment used in the field.

Credentials on offer are a Technical Certificate and a Certificate of Proficiency rather than an associate degree. Training covers the basics of air conditioning and refrigeration, including air distribution, and students prepare for industry-recognized certifications. Related careers the college lists include duct installation, maintenance, commercial or residential installations, and minor appliance repair.

Tuition and fees are handled through the college's tuition calculator, and the page notes the Arkansas Future Grant as a funding option, though no dollar figures are published for the program itself. The college frames the field broadly, saying training can lead to jobs ranging from semi-skilled operation and maintenance work up to plant superintendent roles responsible for mechanical systems that may cost millions of dollars.

Sources: Arkansas HVAC school program.

HVACR program details

Willing to travel? Compare these Arkansas HVAC programs against the best HVAC schools and programs nationally, or browse HVAC programs in another state.

State license

Do you need a license to work as an HVAC tech in Arkansas in 2026?

Yes, you do need a license to work as an HVAC tech in Arkansas, and it attaches to you rather than to your employer. State law requires every individual who designs, installs, constructs, maintains, services, repairs, alters or modifies an HVACR system to hold one of the license classes. Employees who are not licensed hold a state registration instead, at $25 a year.

Applicants must be 18 and pass a board-approved examination. Those with no licensing background show evidence of at least two years of experience as an HVACR contractor or as an employee of one. Liability insurance of $250,000 is required, per licensee or per licensed employee under an employer policy, and there is no bond. The board does not require criminal background checks.

Fees run from $100 to $200 a year depending on class, and the board waives them entirely for applicants receiving Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, TANF or Lifeline benefits, for the recently unemployed, and for anyone whose household is under 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. That waiver is unusual and worth claiming if it applies to you.

Sources: Arkansas HVACR statutes, Arkansas HVACR Licensing Board.

A conflict worth knowing

What are the HVAC license classes in Arkansas in 2026?

Arkansas license classes are described differently by the board's rules and by the statute, and the two do not currently agree. Both list Class A for unlimited HVACR work, Class D for sheet metal and ductwork only, Class E for refrigeration with no horsepower limit, and Class L as a free lifetime service and maintenance license for holders aged 65 and over. They part company on two points.

The board's rules, effective June 2022, cap Class B at 15 tons of cooling per unit and describe a Class C limited to service, repair and component replacement, expressly barred from installing original equipment or replacing existing equipment. The statute as published in October 2025 caps Class B at 25 tons and lists no Class C at all. The board's own application page describes the contractor application as covering classes A, B, D or E, which follows the statute.

The practical advice is to treat the statute as current and to confirm with the board before planning around Class C or around the 15-ton figure. We are flagging this rather than resolving it because we cannot resolve it from the documents: only the board can say which version governs today, and the answer matters if you were counting on a service-only license.

Sources: Arkansas HVACR statutes, Arkansas HVACR board rules, Arkansas HVACR Licensing Board.

School and experience

Can HVAC school replace experience in Arkansas in 2026?

HVAC school can replace experience in Arkansas, but at the board's discretion rather than on a published scale. The rules say the board may substitute HVACR-related educational training for experience provided the training is board-approved, and require transcripts before it will consider the question. No hour or year bands are published, so there is no way to calculate in advance what a given program is worth.

A countervailing clause appears three times in the same rules and is worth reading alongside it: in no case shall apprenticeship, education or training be a prerequisite or condition for licensure. Arkansas will not require school, and it will not promise you a fixed credit for it either. If you intend to use a program to shorten the two-year experience requirement, ask the board about that specific program first.

Licenses run one year from issue. Continuing education is four hours per calendar year, of which two must cover the mechanical code the board has adopted, currently the 2021 International Mechanical Code. Miss a renewal and you have a 90-day cure window, after which you re-sit the examination.

Sources: Arkansas HVACR board rules, Arkansas HVACR Licensing Board.

Who is exempt

What HVAC work is exempt from licensing in Arkansas in 2026?

Several categories of HVAC work are exempt from Arkansas licensing, and one of them is specific to the state's economy. Poultry operations are wholly exempt, whether engaged in hatching, primary processing or further processing of chicken, turkey or other fowl. Arkansas and Alabama both carve poultry out, which tells you something about where the work sits in those states.

The rest of the exemptions are more conventional: work on your own home or farm, motor vehicles, public utilities, hospital employees doing incidental work, self-contained refrigeration systems of 1.5 horsepower or less, and window units up to 36,000 BTU that are not connected to ducts.

Cities cannot add a licence on top. State law says an individual licensed or registered under the chapter is not required to obtain a licence from any city or county to perform HVACR work, though the work remains subject to local permits and inspections. One more consequence is worth noting: an unlicensed person forfeits any mechanic's, materialman's or laborer's lien for the work, so working unlicensed costs you your legal claim to be paid.

Sources: Arkansas HVACR statutes.

Arkansas pay

How much do HVAC techs make in Arkansas in 2026?

HVAC techs in Arkansas make a median of $48,110 a year, the lowest state median in the country for the trade and roughly $12,900 below the national median of $61,010. The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 4,960 HVAC technician jobs in the state in its May 2025 wage survey.

The bottom 10 percent earn $34,220 or less and the top 10 percent earn $70,010 or more, with the middle half between $39,780 and $59,530. The whole distribution sits low: Arkansas's 90th percentile is under $10,000 above the national median. Anyone weighing an Arkansas program should look at where they intend to work afterwards, and at the fact that a licence here is portable into states with substantially higher ceilings. The survey reports current pay and makes no forecast about hiring.

Arkansas United States Annual wage by percentile
10th $37,040 $40,050 25th $42,830 $48,360 Median $48,110 $61,010 75th $59,760 $77,060 90th $69,290 $95,210

Sources: BLS OEWS.

Pay detail

Arkansas HVAC pay, top to bottom

Arkansas HVAC pay runs from the bottom tenth to the top in the table below, and the median is only one number in that range. The state sits below the national median of $61,010. All figures are annual, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS release of May 2025 for occupation 49-9021.

PercentileARUnited States
10th $37,040 $40,050
25th $42,830 $48,360
Median $48,110 $61,010
75th $59,760 $77,060
90th $69,290 $95,210

4,960 HVAC jobs in AR. OEWS is a wage survey and carries no employment projections

Sources

Where our Arkansas HVAC school and program data comes from

Our Arkansas HVAC school and program data comes from the sources listed below, each one linked so you can check it: the state's own board or statute for licensing, federal filings for the schools, the Bureau of Labor Statistics for wages, and each school's own published program page. Licensing research was verified 2026-07-30.

Arkansas HVACR Licensing Board
labor.arkansas.gov
Administrative rules for licensing HVACR contractors (June 2022)
labor.arkansas.gov
Arkansas HVACR statutes (October 2025)
labor.arkansas.gov
Wages
BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 49-9021
Arkansas HVAC school programs
Each school's own published program, linked on its card

Licensing research verified 2026-07-30. Rules change, so confirm with the state board before enrolling

Other states

HVAC schools and programs in other states

HVAC schools and programs in other states are worth comparing, because licensing changes at the state line and a program that shortens the route to a license in Arkansas may count for nothing one state over. Each page below covers that state's own rules, its pay, and the accredited HVAC schools in it.

Alabama HVAC Programs 7 Alaska HVAC Programs 1 Arizona HVAC Programs 1
Arkansas HVAC Programs (the page you are reading) 4
California HVAC Programs 4 Colorado HVAC Programs 2 Delaware HVAC Programs 1 Florida HVAC Programs 6 Georgia HVAC Programs 7 Idaho HVAC Programs 2 Illinois HVAC Programs 7 Indiana HVAC Programs 1 Iowa HVAC Programs 1 Kansas HVAC Programs 1 Kentucky HVAC Programs 1 Louisiana HVAC Programs 10 Massachusetts HVAC Programs 2 Michigan HVAC Programs 2 Minnesota HVAC Programs 3 Mississippi HVAC Programs 2 Missouri HVAC Programs 3 Montana HVAC Programs 1 Nevada HVAC Programs 3 New Jersey HVAC Programs 2 New Mexico HVAC Programs 2 New York HVAC Programs 1 North Carolina HVAC Programs 3 Ohio HVAC Programs 8 Oklahoma HVAC Programs 8 Pennsylvania HVAC Programs 7 South Carolina HVAC Programs 2 South Dakota HVAC Programs 2 Tennessee HVAC Programs 11 Texas HVAC Programs 4 Virginia HVAC Programs 8 Washington HVAC Programs 1 West Virginia HVAC Programs 3 Wisconsin HVAC Programs 6

A state appears here once its licensing rules have been read from that state's own board or statute. See all HVAC schools and programs by state or the national ranking.